I saw a mother last week on tv crying out in anguish and frustration about the death of her son from senseless gun violence in California. She said she wanted no more “good thoughts and prayers”, she wanted action, real gun reform. It touched me deeply as I heard the pain permeating her spirit due to the tragic loss of her beloved child. I thought of all the prayerful emails and well-intentioned Facebook posts extending condolences and offering comfort, and how they rang hollow with this grieving mother. She is seeking significant change to promote justice for the inhuman act perpetuated upon her child by an individual with a gun.
As I meditate upon this issue, it raises a question I have about the posture of the hearts of the “right to bear arms” crusaders. It feels their hearts are mired in fear and selfishness about their own “rights”, personal circumstances and possessions, and not considering the bigger picture. It’s also obvious the gunsmiths, firearm, ammunition, and gun accessory manufacturers are deeply concerned about the economic ripple effects on their livelihood if there were to be some new strong and meaningful legislation which would limit accessibility to, acceptable type(s) allowed, and ownership of firearms were enacted on a national level.
I am not about trying to put anyone out of business, but as communities and nations, we have a responsibility to consider the greater good, even if it makes us uncomfortable or impacts us personally. I have heard all of the arguments about deficiencies in our mental health systems, and “I am a responsible gun owner and would never…”, and the political football of the 2nd amendment; all of which deflect from the real issue; more people are losing their lives due to gun violence every day.
We fight tooth and nail about taking any substantive action to preserve the sanctity of human life! Why is that? It makes no sense and is incredibly grieving that we fight so hard to preserve the right to have basically unfettered access to firearms and gloss over these mass murders. My heart cries out with the mother in California.
I believe our prayers of comfort and good wishes mean nothing if we are not prepared to do what needs to be done to show we value our people more than guns. In the face of all this loss of life, shouldn’t we be willing to make the process of gun ownership much more stringent and incorporate a mental health component to the process? Fixing our mental healthcare is a long cycle process, because those people fighting through their emotional and psychological issues have largely been discarded, ignored, and woefully underserved. However, we can push for legislative changes in the gun management, accessibility and ownership process now if we put our priorities in order. Keeping it real, this could could mean you are required to turn in any tactical weapons you own, and perhaps we do away with concealed carry permits, to move once again past the “wild west” mindset in service of a greater purpose. And,we no longer make either of those things accessible to the general public.
I fully realize I am baring my chest and painting a bullseye 🎯 for the ire, slings, arrows, criticism, and denigration by the gun rights supporters out there; many of you whom are my dear friends and acquaintances, but I can live with that.
We cannot continue to make the same arguments, take the same stances, stall, and do nothing any longer. Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is the definition of insanity, and our culture is infected with it. People continue to lose their lives each day, every week, year in and year out. How can we continue to defend the validity of an approach and ideology which is so obviously broken? How many more families must mourn the murders of loved ones before our hearts are wounded enough to generate movement?
I am not a naive “gun hater”, I am a lover of people, of life. I am a Christian man who believes walking out his faith means he must sometimes make hard choices which may require his discomfort and sacrifice in service of others and a higher purpose; to support an atmosphere of fearless generosity, love and justice.
While I may not be able to effect immediate change on a macro level, if my words and prayers resonate to promote growth and change in one spirit, if one person rejects the status quo and works to make a difference, I will be forever grateful, and glean great joy from the gift of that one heart.
Finally, please know this, no matter if we find ourselves with divergent perspectives and on opposite sides of an issue, I still love you, respect your right to have a perspective, and value your life.
With respect and deep regards,
Kevin
Life With Love 